


Axis

by Nahara



Category: Star Trek (2009)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-08-13
Updated: 2011-08-13
Packaged: 2017-10-22 14:30:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/239056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nahara/pseuds/Nahara
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kirk does an ancient Vulcan tea ceremony for Spock. Even the best intentions sometimes go wrong.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Axis

**Author's Note:**

> Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis  
> on which the world earth revolves - slowly, evenly, without  
> rushing toward the future. Live the actual moment.  
> Only this moment is life.
> 
> ~ Thich Nat Hahn

James T. Kirk was (to use the human vernacular) _up to something_.

What that ‘something’ might be, Spock could not even begin to postulate. If he had learned anything from being Kirk’s First Officer, it was that his only predictable quality was his unpredictability. The Captain had, even for him, been more unpredictable of late. Spock hand never thought this was even possible, but the evidence was not something he could ignore.

Kirk never shirked his duties – if anything, he had a pathological devotion to them, enough that bodily injuries were becoming a frequent occurrence in the name of said duty – but nevertheless he was unusually distracted from his responsibilities. Though Spock certainly did not worry about such things, it did still give him pause.

Spock was by no means alone in his hypothesis of Kirk’s being ‘up to something’. Most of the _Enterprise_ crew, particularly those who came into direct contact with the Captain on a daily basis, had noticed Kirk’s odd behaviour, even Scotty – who seemed determined not to notice anything if it did not have valves, pressure gages or was covered in grease.

Kirk would stroll about the _Enterprise_ like a man deep in philosophical thought, pondering the meaning of life (a futile endeavour, Spock was tempted to point out) with his head down and hands deep in his pockets.

Spock caught him once with a book – an actual antique – on the observation deck. He’d been sitting cross legged on the floor, brows drawn together in a study of absolute concentration. Periodically he’d take large bites from an apple in his left hand. Mostly he seemed to forget he had the apple at all and would look mildly surprised to find it impeding his ability to turn from one page to another. It had been fascinating to watch and Spock was certain he could have stayed there for at least another 23.35 minutes. But he’d decided to retreat and let the Captain have his reverie. He would quench his curiosity at a later date.

Another time Spock had witnessed the end of an (unnecessarily) dramatic debate between Dr McCoy and the Captain. Kirk had the upper hand if his cocky smile was any indication (which it usually was), whereas McCoy’s face had turned a shade of puce that could not possibly have been good for his health. The doctor had barrelled past Spock without so much as a glance, his angry words filling up the corridor in his wake. Mostly they’d involved expletives of a sexual nature – which Spock found distasteful – and were aimed at the Captain. Kirk had only continued to smile. When he caught sight of Spock he winked, then went back to his reading.

It was all most curious.

So, when Kirk strode up to Spock before Alpha shift one day and politely demanded his attendance that evening for a game of chess, Spock was only too willing to agree. As a scientist he was hardly going to decline an opportunity to examine the evidence (so to speak) at first hand.

He arrived at the appointed time and Kirk invited him in with a smile and waved Spock over to the table. The table was not set up with the three-dimensional chess set but a porcelain tea service – sage green in colour and clearly of high quality. It looked to Spock’s eyes like a Vulcan set. Spock was baffled.

“Take a seat.” Kirk laughed, pushing Spock playful by the shoulder.

“Captain, I am afraid I do not understand,” Spock began, but was cut off from asking for further elucidation by another friendly shove from Kirk.

“Just sit, will you? I’ll be back in a second. Need to get ready.”

Spock would have liked clarification as to what ‘ready’ entailed, but Kirk had disappeared. He sat down and admired the tea service up close. It really was excellent craftsmanship. He was so engrossed in examining the porcelain Spock almost missed the reappearance of his Captain. Almost.

Spock would never do a double-take. Hypothetically speaking, had his human genetics been cultivated with a touch more enthusiasm, he certainly would have looked twice at his Captain at that moment as he stood in the doorway of their shared facilities. But Spock didn’t deal in hypotheticals, so he simply blinked and chose to remain stoic.

“Captain, may I enquire as to why you are so… informally attired?”

Kirk looked down at himself without embarrassment but with a dawning hint of doubt.

“Informally attired? I’m _naked_ , Spock.” He said blithely, taking a seat opposite Spock.

“Indeed, Captain. But you have neglected to answer my question as to why.”

“Because, it’s part of this Vulcan tea ceremony I’m doing for you.” Jim huffed an exasperated sigh. “I thought perhaps you’d appreciate it. Or something.”

“I’m often appreciative of tea, but I fail to recollect any Vulcan tea ceremony involving the removal of one’s clothing.”

“No strip- _teas_ in Vulcan culture?” Kirk said it flippantly, slightly sarcastic. Spock chose to ignore the question.

“From where did you find your source?” he asked instead.

“In an old book I bought recently – damn load of credits it cost me, too. I translated the text myself… not as well as either you or Uhura could have, but well enough,”

Spock said nothing. Jim rolled his eyes and continued.

“The ceremony is _supposed_ to be about remembrance while also cultivating new beginnings. They called it…” Jim looked around and, locating the book in question, pulled it over and opened it to the correct page. “They called it, and I’m translating roughly into Standard here, Departure Ceremony.”

“I know this ritual of which you speak, Captain. _Mah’na_ is ancient and very important to Vulcans – we do not mourn as humans do, but this ceremony is the closest we come to rationally dealing with any… unexpected reactions we might encounter. A meditational technique.” Spock paused. “It does not involve nudity.”

“The hell it doesn’t!” Jim said, voice raised in exasperation. He jabbed almost viciously at the book in his hands.

“Here! Right here. Listen,” and Kirk began to read haltingly from the ancient text. “ _The Ceremony of the Departed is undertaken as an act of reverence and deepest serenity. The power of the ceremony lies within the participants’ ability to be open, to meditate to the highest plane of consciousness – the truest and most logical state of mind. You must lay yourself_ naked _before the elements; you must lay yourself_ naked _before your ceremony partners…_

It took me a while to translate, but fuck me if that isn’t what it says. I’m laying myself pretty damn naked before you, Spock. As you can see.”

“Captain,” Spock said, schooling his face so that the amusement he felt bubbling inside would not show. “You have read the text too literally. The word is often translated – wrongly, I might add – as ‘naked’ or ‘bare’. It is a metaphor; it means that the participants should be open to external forces and allow their minds to embrace one another.”

“It means… open to telepathy?”

“Affirmative. Do not feel that you are lacking in skill, Captain. This text is commonly misinterpreted, particularly by humans who like the emotional connotations they perceive in that particular translation. There are 137 known incidences in which this exact misreading has resulted in…”

“Abject humiliation?”

“Misunderstandings.”

“OK. So…” Kirk ran a hand through his hair before looking at Spock across the forgotten tea service. He grinned sheepishly. “I’m sitting around in my birthday suit in front of my First Officer for no reason.”

“Birthday suit? Captain, as we have already established, you are quite definitely not wearing any –“

“Figure of speech, Spock. Means I’m sitting here with nothing on but the skin I was born in. Means naked – the human kind of naked, not the confusing, metaphorical Vulcan naked.”

“That is my assessment of the situation, Captain, yes.”

“Right.” Kirk was quiet for a moment, meditating on something before he looked up again, eyes bright. “It’d be swell if you didn’t mention this to anyone. Especially Uhura who would totally laugh at my mistranslation fuckup. And I can’t image she’d take me being all naked in front of her boyfriend very well, either. She may look as though a stiff breeze could snap her in half but man, Uhura can really hurt a fellow when she gets a mind.”

“I… I do not believe there will be any consternation or anger from Nyota. We are no longer in a relationship and thus I am not her ‘boyfriend’. She should no longer have any interest in whom I see naked.”

The look on Jim’s face at that particular announcement was… fascinating. His jaw went slack and his eyes grew large and he was utterly speechless – perhaps for the first time his life. Spock felt something akin to pride at having achieved such a miracle.

“Oh jeez, I’m so sorry Spock,” he said at last. Kirk rubbed a hand across the back of his neck self-consciously and looked decidedly discomforted.

“You have nothing to be sorry for. It was an amicable decision on both our parts. We simply came to the conclusion that we were incompatible.”

“Ok – not awkward at all, hearing you say that while I’m naked,” Kirk muttered. “Tell you what, How about I go and throw some clothes on and we do this ceremony – _Mah’na_ – properly? Sound like a plan?”

“I does indeed sound like a plan, Jim. It would be most acceptable to me.” Kirk’s smile was blinding at the sound of his given name. Spock resolved to use it more frequently in future – after all, a happy Captain meant a happy ship.

Jim stood up and – with no embarrassment and not attempt at hiding his… modesty, he slipped on a pair of grey sweat pants and a ‘Starfleet Academy’ t-shirt. Casually he sat himself back down opposite Spock. He grinned one of those ‘we’re probably going to get shot at by a lot of angry aliens but who cares’ smiles that so exasperated Spock. Then, quite visibly, Jim composed himself. He took a deep breath, eyes closed before saying,

“I welcome thee, Spock. May our minds find logic in _mah’na_.”

Spock was a little taken aback, but found himself experiencing a rather inappropriate glow of pleasure. It felt warm and Spock was loath to suppress it totally. Without prompting, Spock recited his part of the ceremony.

“I thank thee and extend a welcome in return.”

“ _S'ti th'laktra_.”

“And I thee.”

Jim nodded solemnly. He picked up a small pot from the table and began to spoon the contents into the steaming teapot. Spock smelt something very much like the Terran plant jasmine. Jim continued to speak as he stirred the pot.

“Hear us, children of Vulcan. We remember and we learn; we remember and we purge ourselves. We seek logic and we seek it in your honour.”

Kirk carried out the tea ceremony deftly, finger perfect. He wiped down the rim of Spock’s teacup with a starched napkin, running it around slowly once, twice, thrice, then folding it in four and repeating the cleansing for his own cup. Jim remained solemn, eyes sad as he turned the sage green teapot clockwise until the handle was facing him. He placed a silver sieve across Spock’s teacup before he took up the pot and poured the jasmine scented liquid from a great height. Spock bowed his head slightly in acceptance and watched as Jim did the same for himself.

“We remember thee. In the name of sacrifice and science,” Jim lifted his cup and took a sip. Spock followed suit. “Reason and ritual,” another sip, “logic and… love.” A third.

Finally, Jim looked up at Spock, eyes intense with something deep and endless and Spock was unsure where to look – he thought perhaps he did not want to look away at all. Kirk raised his teacup to salute him.

“And for you, my _t’hy’la_ ,” he said.

Spock felt himself jolt physically.

“Could you repeat that, Captain?” He knew he’d heard right, but it made little sense. Spock had to take a breath to school his features and steady himself – he was relatively proud of the result, though his heart was taking its time to return to an approximation of normal.

Jim’s face fell, childlike in its disappointment.

“Was my pronunciation off?” He looked down at the open book on the floor, brow furrowing.

“No, it was not.”

“Oh. I translated _t’hy’la_ as some mix between brother and friend. Was I wrong? Did I insult you?”

“You were not wrong.” Spock chose not to illuminate his captain of the other meaning. It was not… appropriate at that time. “I was simply surprised to hear you choose that word. I did not think myself more than a colleague to you.”

Jim rolled his eyes, clearly exasperated, though Spock could not surmise why the reaction was so strong. It had been a fairly astute observation. Spock had long since realised that Kirk liked most people and treated all his crew with equal interest and affection. There was no one person who seemed to receive special attention – even Dr McCoy did not appear to get preferential treatment regarding Jim’s affections.

“Spock. You are my friend – not just my colleague,” Jim told him. He smiled a lopsided smile that so often confounded Spock.

“And dude,” he continued sternly, “you’re totally ruining the mood. I was trying for gravitas, here.”

“I am sorry, Jim.”

“Yeah well, just finish your part of the ceremony and then we can get on with business of drinking the rest of this awesome – and extortionately expensive – tea.”

Spock felt his hands clench in his lap and had to consciously relax his fingers before he could take up the steaming cup. He saluted his captain.

“ _Nemaiyo, t’hy’la_ ,” he said, steadying his mind as he had done his hands. The ceremony was mostly complete, all there was left was to drink the tea in silence and reflection.

Spock allowed the warm, fragrant liquid to take over his mind and felt its calming effect take over his limbs. He watched Jim drink his own and they sat in companionable silence. Jim’s eyes were thoughtful with a hint of… amusement? Or mischief? Or perhaps that was simply the look a human gave to a friend. It was not unpleasant. Even when both had finished they said nothing for a long, easy while.

“So, despite a little wardrobe malfunction, did I do the ceremony justice?” Jim was smiling, finger absently spinning around the rim of his empty teacup.

“It was most satisfactory.” Spock paused before taking a deep breath and continuing. “Thank you for remembering with me, _ashayam_.”

Jim quirked an eyebrow. “ _Ashayam_? Yet another Vulcan word to translate. What does it mean?”

It was Spock’s turn to raise a brow. “I believe the human saying goes ‘that is for me to know and you to find out.’ A curious phrase but I am certain I have used it correctly.”

Jim laughed, shaking his head at Spock.

“Oh boy, are _you_ in for a world of trouble now. You do realise there is a distinct possibility that I will end up naked at the end of this?”

Spock looked at him coolly before saying, amusement well leashed, “The thought had indeed crossed my mind, Jim. I am prepared.”


End file.
